Mark Brendanawicz
Mark Brendanawicz was a main character in the first and second seasons of the NBC comedy-drama Parks and Recreation. He is Ann Perkins' ex-boyfriend, and Leslie Knope's colleague, who works with the city planning department of Pawnee, Indiana. Background Mark Brendanawicz was a city planner with the Pawnee municipal government. When he studied city planning in college, Mark was optimistic about the field and dreamed of designing huge and impressive cities. However, since graduation, Mark learned most of the career largely involved mundane technical issues, such as regulating the sizes of garages and proposed construction additions to houses. As a result, Mark grew jaded and disillusioned with the career, and became critical of government processes in general. Mark and Leslie slept together on one occasion - as a result, Leslie harbored romantic feelings for him for over 6 years. Mark does not return said feelings - he barely remembers the incident taking place.Amy Poehler comedy 'Parks and Recreation' adds cast Storyline Season 1 Leslie continues to harbor a crush on Mark from their hookup several years ago, but Mark is not interested in her romantically, and instead appears to be more interested in her friend Ann. Mark agrees to help Leslie in her quest to turn a large construction pit into a park, but he is pragmatic about her chances of success, and warns it has little chance of succeeding. Mark is somewhat self-absorbed and engages in romantic flings with multiple women without any sign of seeking a commitment. When Leslie seeks his help in dealing with a female reporter (Shauna Malwae-Tweep) writing a negative story about the pit, Mark sleeps with the reporter, which makes the situation worse and angers Leslie. During one night while intoxicated and unhappy about the insignificance of his career, Mark makes a halfhearted attempt to flirt with Ann, unaware of Ann's anger over problems with her boyfriend Andy. Mark's advances are quickly and brutally rejected by Ann as a result. Later that night, Mark and Leslie spend time together at the pit and Mark attempts to kiss her. Not wishing to reconnect with Mark in his drunken state, Leslie rejects his advances, and Mark accidentally falls into the pit and injures his legs. In "Rock Show", he feels depressed about his job, as his most significant contribution to the city as city planner has been getting a speed bump reduced by 2 inches. Season 2 Following the accident at the pit, Mark becomes less jaded and abandons his promiscuous lifestyle. He and Ann develop a romantic interest in each other after she nurses him back to health at the hospital while his legs healed. They start dating only after Leslie assures Ann she is fine with the pairing and appears to have moved on from her long-standing infatuation with Mark. He fences off Andy's juvenile insults and attempts to mess with his and Ann's relationship, but also contends with some jealousy when Ann tries to "save" her close friend Justin as a potential future mate. Mark planned to propose to Ann, but she'd told Leslie she wanted to break up with him, and she did dump him after Leslie narrowly prevented Mark from making what would have been a humiliating proposal during the Diabetes Telethon. When the Pawnee government is shut down, Mark considers that part of the trio of signs that enough is enough (the others being Ann's dumping him and a pigeon crapping on his head from inside the building) and he takes a job with Norton Construction. Leslie is angry that he's leaving, but she later apologizes for calling him "Mark Brendana-quits" and he simply says that if more people in local government were like her, he wouldn't be leaving it. Trivia * In the episode "Practice Date", during a game in which the Parks Department employees attempt to dig up dirt on each other, Mark reveals to Ann that he had an affair with a married woman when he was 16. * He drives a red Ford F150 truck. * Although the producers of the show hinted at a possible return for his character, Brendanawicz does not return to the show after his departure. * He is the third (and final) citizen to fall into Municipal Lot 48. Gallery References Category:Ann Perkins Love Interests Category:Leslie Knope Love Interests Category:Main characters Category:Characters Category:Male Characters Category:Season 1 Characters Category:Season 2 Characters